Lizzy's blog

Next Stop: Senior Year

Another year down, another year closer to graduation. I’m having a difficult time wrapping my mind around the fact that I am now a senior. It seems like just yesterday I was a freshman, then I blinked and junior year came to an end! Everyone always says, “Enjoy every moment of college because it will fly by!” As a freshman I honestly didn’t understand what everyone meant by it because I couldn’t imagine college going by so quickly in 4 years. However, now that I’m 3 years into it, I totally understand the saying!

I do feel like I have come to enjoy the different seasons of life I have been through during college. I have been through times of immense joy and school was easy. I have also been through times that were tough and I didn’t think I was going to survive a certain class. One verse that has always remained in the back of my head through it all was Job 1:21 “…the Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.” Sometimes it is easy to forget but one of my goals is to always praise the Lord no matter the circumstances.

I think that overall junior year was a challenge because I began taking mostly Psychology classes but it also showed me that I am capable of working hard and getting good grades! By taking so many Psych classes, I also realized how much I love my major! I am so blessed that I have picked something I am passionate about and that I have my parent’s full support behind what I want to do. So as kind of a good-bye until that fall I wanted to share (below) some of my favorite Instagram's from the year. I pray that you all would seek the Lord this summer and that it would be a great time of growth! Check back in August for some updates of my time at home in Sweden! 

NC State vs. Liberty football game with my best friends! 

Donald Trump spoke in Convocation 

Romney Rally in Lynchburg the day before the Election

My first time voting in a Presidential Election 

Wrote a lot of papers and ate a lot of late night Bacon to keep me going 

Was a part of an incredible Small Group 

Celebrated my first Christmas in our apartment 

The man himself, Tim Tebow spoke in Convocation

Went on Spring Break with my Mom 

Had snow in Lynchburg, even in April after Spring Break

Went to so many Bonfires in the Spring and new friends

Celebrated my Birthday Mexican Style with my amazing girls 

Last day of classes and my BIRTHDAY!

Probably one of the best birthday presents a girl could ask for is that the last day of classes be on her birthday! Well, this year I got my wish! I still can't believe I've made it through another semester and another year of life. This year I was so incredibly spoiled by my friends and I realized how incredibly blessed I am! For my birthday this year, all I wanted to do was go out for Mexican food with the girls and then have cake back at my apartment! We had such a blast so I thought I would share a bunch of photos and a Vine post from my birthday! 

With my best friend on our last day of classes

Awesome group of girls at dinner!

Group shot!

The amazing Ice Cream cake my best friend made for me!

So many flowers!!!! :D 

Phil Wickham Concert

One of my favorite things about Liberty is that students love to get together and worship the Lord. Last week the student government association hosted a FREE (as you guys know I love that word!) Phil Wickham concert! A lot of people haven’t heard of Phil Wickham, but those who do know that his voice is absolutely incredible. I’m pretty sure my jaw literally dropped during the concert just because of some of the notes he hit!

Before the concert I got to have dinner with one of my best friends and despite the torrential downpour outside we were determined to get to this concert. What I love about Phil Wickham is not only his singing ability but also his ability to write solid biblically correct worship music. The lyrics in his songs portray so well my hearts cry. I’m pretty sure my new favorite lyrics are from the song he co-wrote with Jeremy Riddle for Bethel Church. The lyrics are: This is amazing grace, this is unfailing love, that you would take my place, that you would bear my cross, you would lay down your life, that I would be set free, Jesus I sing for, All that you’ve done for me. Check out some of the video clips I got from the concert below! 

First Friday Galleries

One thing Liberty students often complain about is that there’s NOTHING to do in Lynchburg! I definitely remember saying “I’m bored” a lot my freshman year but once you get creative, you’ll never have a Friday night with nothing to do! So this past Friday night some of my friends and I set out to have a new adventure in downtown Lynchburg. The best part about it was that we had a blast AND it was free!

The first Friday of the month in Lynchburg, different art galleries in downtown Lynchburg and Rivermont are open (free of charge) from 5-8 p.m. The galleries are spread out all around so they have allowed for the trolley to be free of charge for you to hop on and hop off to see as many as you like. We only had the time to check out Riverviews Artspace because it was so large and we took our time talking to different artists and even making our own art!

In one studio at the Riverviews Artspace we were able to pour molds using “Plaster O’Paris.” Now doesn’t that sound fancy!? It was so fun being like a little kid again in art class and making a little sunshine and helicopter mold!

We then ate dinner at our favorite Mexican restaurant downtown called El Mariachi (this part of the night wasn’t free but hey, we all have to eat!). The waiters there are hilarious and they make you feel like part of the family. We walked around a bit to let our food settle and then we jumped on the trolley and rode it around just to see where all it stopped for future reference. If you’ve never ridden a trolley, definitely take advantage of this free trolley ride, it was so much fun!

I am so thankful for friends who are always up for an adventure and for a beautiful downtown for us to enjoy! 

Take me out to the ball game

If you ask any of my friends what is my least favorite sport to watch, they will all instantly say baseball. However, with the brand new baseball stadium that opened this season, I decided to give baseball another shot! I have now been to three games and I can say that I actually have really enjoyed myself!! The best game out of all three was hands down the Liberty vs. Army game and to say that it was cold outside was an understatement. Towards the middle of the game our hands and feet were getting numb but we just couldn’t leave because the game was so close!

The beautiful new stadium 

I’m going to try to explain it in my limited baseball terms knowledge but it was such a fabulous game! By the end of the 9^th inning, the score was tied which then brought the game into the 10^th inning. After the 10^th inning, neither team had scored. Not even my friends who had a good knowledge of baseball knew what was going to happen. Apparently they just keep playing until someone scores, so finally in the next inning Liberty scored and won!!! It was seriously one of the most intense games I’ve ever seen! So this is a shout out to the Liberty baseball team for helping this girl finally find an appreciation for baseball! If you get the chance, definitely head out to one of the games this season (especially when it warms up!).

Freezing with my friends Jake and Drew 

This past weekend we were able to go to the UVA vs. Liberty home game and had a blast. Although Liberty lost, it was so neat to see SO many people come out to support both teams. I’m excited to have another sport that I understand (somewhat) and enjoy watching! 

Lecrae

This past Friday, a dream of mine came true! I finally got to see hip-hop artist Lecrae perform!! I’m going to try to not embarrass myself by saying this but I am such a huge Lecrae fan that I can rap every single word of several of his songs (lots of long roatrips by myself are to blame for this). Probably one of my all-time favorite songs of his is “Background” because I think it is so neat to be able to worship the Lord with any style of music, and hip hop is just one way to do that!

Lecrae spoke in convocation on Friday morning and gave a great message that needs to be preached more often to college students. He talked about the “secular and sacred divide” that Christians have created in their lives especially in their vocation. A majority of Liberty students are going into a field where they can be salt and light and it is so important to remember that whatever job we take, we can minister to the people around us. As a junior, I am beginning to think more and more about what I want to do when I graduate. This message was so key to help me remember that whatever fields I choose to go into, I have a ministry and God can use me if I allow him to.

Waiting for the concert to start with my awesome friend Sarah! 

Lecrae performing on Friday night! 

I created a video of them performing (below) and we had so much fun at the concert!! Lecrae brought Andy Mineo and Propaganda with him and they put on an incredible show. 

Spring Break 2013

I’m pretty sure my favorite break of the year is Spring Break. It’s a time when college students all over the country seek sun and sand in the southern states. It comes right in the middle of the semester when we need rest and relaxation the most. This year I had the opportunity to go to Florida again and be with family! My mom was able to join me and we had such a blast driving around Florida! Here is a little photo blog of what all we did! 

My first stop on my journey to Florida was in Greensboro where I picked up my mom who had flown in from Sweden. It was SO great to be able to see her because it doesn't happen much! 

Our first stop was in Jacksonville, Florida where we stayed with my aunt, uncle and little cousins. After the weekend we decided to take a spur of the moment trip to Disney World on Monday because the kids had no school. This is picture is of my cousins and I at the entrance of Disney. 

At Disney we convinced my little 6 year old cousin to go on the scary dinosaur ride (we're so mean!) and afterwards she was not a happy camper, so I let her play around with my phone and she snapped a cute picture of her sad little face! 

My mom and I then went on to Clearwater Beach to get a day out in the sun. Our plan didn't quite turn out as we had wanted it because it was SO windy but we still managed to get a little beach time in! This is the view from our hotel, I could definitely get used to that! 

Our final days were back in Jacksonville where I got one great day by the pool to get my Spring Break tan! I am so thankful for my family and the great week we had together!  I'm realizing more and more how important it is to cherish the time you have together! 

Internships

When I decided to be a Psych major, I knew that I was going to have to complete a 125-hour internship to be able to graduate. That was always in the back of my head and I’ve been thinking a lot about what I want to do for it as I end my junior year. The best thing about Psychology is that there are an extensive number of fields you can go into with your degree. My number one problem that I have right now is picking a direction to head in. I love so many aspects of psychology and would be completely content picking any one of them.  

Even if you’re not an upperclassman, it’s a good idea to begin thinking about internships now. It can help you to begin narrowing down what you want to do for an internship. As you begin to take classes in your major you will learn what interests you and what doesn’t. Recently, I went to the meeting for Psychology students to get more information about the logistics behind getting your internship to qualify for college credits. One great thing the professor said about internships is that a lot of times you will realize that this is NOT the field you want to go into, and that is a very good thing! The main reason that different departments require students to complete an internship is to help us narrow down what they want to do in the future and to give experience in their field.

So right now I am in the process of finding an internship for this summer in Sweden. If you thought finding an internship was hard in America, try doing it oversees in another language, talk about a challenge! This is something I really want to do though, to get more international experience and to improve my Swedish! Hopefully I will be able to report back soon that I found an internship that fits what I am most interested in! If you are looking for an internship here in America, Liberty has some great resources to find one. Check out their list of websites to look for internships! 

END IT movement

As someone who has watched the Passion conference online from Sweden every year, I am always moved by the causes they support. For the past two years they have been shedding a light on the fact that Slavery still exists today and we need to raise awareness about it. This year they decided to begin a movement called the END IT movement. This past week for Campus Church, the END IT movement team was a Liberty and we devoted that time to shedding light on modern day slavery. Liberty students were able to raise over $6000 in one offering to give to the END IT movement. A group of students also put together a prayer room for people to pray for this issue after the service. I love that I go to a university that wants to speak up and pray for those who have no voice and they are not afraid to raise awareness about tough topics.

That night Ben Gutierrez spoke and really challenged students to develop endurance in their walks with Christ. He used Philippians 2:12 which says “Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling.” At first glance you might wonder, how did he connect endurance to that verse but he gave four great points of how we can develop endurance and what it looks like.  He connected this talk well with how the END IT movement by saying that this problem of slavery will not be fixed in one night; it is an enduring commitment. Check out the video below, it was definitely one of the top ten sermons I've heard in my life (and I've heard a lot!!). 

Global Focus Week

As someone who has lived overseas for 11 years and traveled all over the place, I am very passionate about anything international. This week at Liberty it’s Global Focus week, so of course I am going to blog lots about it! Monday’s convocation was definitely one of my favorites because we got to see international students at Liberty carrying flags from their home countries. My really good friend Nissy got all dressed up to participate in it and I got a picture with her later in the day!

The flags from all over the world being walked into Convocation! 

My incredible Indian friend Nissy and I

If you haven’t read my blog about the Children of the World choir from a year ago, go check it out. They came back again this year and performed in Convocation on Monday and they were without doubt the cutest kids I’ve ever seen (I say that every time the come though)!! They sang the song “Dancing Generation” and it was such an amazing song to hear coming from young international believers!

Children of the World in Convocation (Photo by: David Duncan)

We also got to hear from Jo Saxton is from London but her parents were from Nigeria. Her message fit so well with Global Focus week because she talked about how we are to be the salt and light in the world. I mostly enjoyed listening to her though because of her incredible Londoner accent! Check out the convocation video below!